When you are asked to write an assessment at University, your lecturer will expect that you cite your research within your writing and produce a reference list at the end of the piece of work. They will ask you to reference material following one specific style (e.g. Harvard, APA etc.) which determines the formatting.
Your guide to referencing and avoiding plagiarism
Cite Them Right Online is an interactive eBook that will help you reference a wide range of sources, including: books, films, journals, web resources, images, tweets, and much, much more.
You will need to:
1. First, select the referencing style required for the assignment (e.g. Harvard)
2. Then select the type of resource you want to reference (.e.g a journal article)
Th site will provide a template that you can fill in with the relevant information to create correct citations and references.
1. Find the item (e.g. book or article) you require in Library Search.
2. Click on the 'cite' button to the right of the title.
3. Select the citation style required for the assignment e.g. Harvard and copy the citation into your work.
Alternatively, if you are using a citation management software such as EndNote, you can export it by selecting an option to the left.
Referencing is the practice of acknowledging and describing other pieces of work that you have read or used whilst completing your own work.
The Learning Development Centre (LDC) can help you with referencing and academic writing. You can book an appointment with them, join one of their session or consult their learning material on Blackboard.
If the reference management tool you use allows you to access full-text content, you will need to input authentication information in your settings in order to use this feature off-campus:
Authentication URL:
https://go.openathens.net/redirector/aston.ac.uk?url=
OpenURL Path:
http://widgets.ebscohost.com/prod/customerspecific/s9815128/redirect.php
This authentication URL should work with most of our subscribed resources, but if you find that you encounter an error, please try the OpenURL route from the reference management tool, or check that we have access to the content you need using Library Search.
Please note that EndNote is not currently compatible with either our Authentication system or our OpenURL link resolver.
Aston University subscribes to this commercial reference management software package.
It is used to manage bibliographies and references when writing dissertations and articles
Watch this video for more guidance:
Consult the EndNote X7 - The Little EndNote How-To Book
Alternatively, catch up on Aston University's Research Bites series, where you can learn how to "Cite it! Sort it! EndNote it!"
Cite This For Me is a tool designed to help students prepare their whole bibliography or reference list quickly and easily. APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA, Vancouver, plus thousands of other referencing styles are all supported. With a simple, sophisticated design, Cite This For Me can assist students of all ages and education levels.
Please note: The free version requires you to export your Bibliography before closing the software otherwise you will lose it.
CiteThisForMe is now a Chegg product.
Colwiz is free reference management software that grown out of Oxford University.
Mendeley is a free reference manager and academic social network that can help you organize your research, collaborate with others online, and discover the latest research:
Zotero is a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources.
Take a look at what you can do with Zotero: